Device eob cleaning exhaust gases



Patented Nov. 9, 1926.

UNITED stares AMANDUS KOLSTRAND, OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.

DEVICE FOR CLEANING EXHAUST GASES.

Application filed September 5,1924. Serial No. 735,994.

My invention relates to improvements in gas and smoke cleaning devicesfor use in connection with engines and the object of my invention is toprovide simple and eiiicient means for removing all dirt and soot fromthe discharging exhaust products of engines, particularly internalcombustion engines.

Other objects are to provide means for mutiiing the exhaust of internalcombustion engines; to provide means for reducing the back pressure inthe exhaust pipes and muffier; and to provide means that will reduce thevibration occasioned by the exhaust.

Other and more specific objects will be apparent from the followingdescription taken in connection with the accompanying drawings. g

The present invention is especially well adapted for marine use wheresmoke and soot are very undesirable but may also be found useful inconnection with other than marine engines. On boats and ships havinginternal combustion or oil burning engines it is common practice toallow the open end of an exhaust pipe to terminate within an uprightsmoke stack of the usual form. V hen this is done certain by-products ofcombustion, as soot and oil will often 30 settle on the vessel, thusconstituting a nuisance. The smoke and fumes of the exhaust. gases willalso envelop the vessel and provevery disagreeable at times.

This undesirable feature is partly overcome in some vessels bypositioning the exhaust pipe so that it will discharge from the side ofthe vessel near the water line but when this is done the side of thevessel near the end of the exhaust pipe will be blackened in well. knownmanner and certain conditions of the wind will blow the soot, smoke andexhaust gases, and even sprays of water thrown up by the exhaust gases,over the vessel.

My present invention removes the necessity for terminating the exhaustpipe at the side of the vessel by providing means for washing theexhaust gases thereby removing all solid matter and a great deal of thesmoke and impure gas from the exhaust products.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a view partly in verticalsection and part ly in elevation of apparatus constructed in accordancewith my invention.

Fig. 2 is a View in cross section on broken j 1 line 22 of Fig. 1. i

Fig. 3 is vertical section of a modification of the invention.

Referring to the drawings, throughout which like reference numeralsdesignate like parts, 5 designates an exhaust pipe from aninternalcombustion engine and 6 designates a smoke pipe or stack into which thepipe 5 is arranged to project.

In accordance with my invention I provide a solid water tight bottom 7for the smoke pipe 6 and let the exhaust pipe 5 extend upwardly througha packing or leak proof connection 8 in the center of this solid bot tom7. The top of the exhaust pipe 5 is closed by a cap 10 and the sidewalls of said exhaust pipe are provided, a short distance below the cap10, with a plurality of slots or perforations 11 arranged at frequentintervals entirely around the pipeandalfording ample area through whichthe exhaust gases may discharge in a siclewise direction.

F or convenience the upper end of the exhaust pipe may be made separablefrom the remainder of saidpipe and connected therewith by a coupling 12.

An inverted cap or casing 9 is placedover the end of exhaust pipe 5 andmay be" secured to cap 10 by a screw 4- The casing 5 is provided belowthe slots 11 with a plurality of perforations 18 that are surrounded bya water chamber 14 which connects with a pipe 15 through which water issupplied under pressure, the arrangement being such that an annularspray'which amounts to substantiall-y a thin sheet or film of water isdirected inwardly against the pipe 5. All of the exhaust gasesdischarging from slots 11- will be caused to pass downwardly throughthis film of water and all solid matter, as soot and oil, and a greatdeal of the smoke will be caught by the water and carried down theexterior of the exhaust pipe 5 into the reservoirformed in the bottom ofstack 6 from which it may be discharged through an outlet pipe 16. Theexhaust gases, after passing through the water, pass out of the bottomend ofcasing 9 and thence up and out of the stack 6. The exhaust gasesstrike the water in the bottom of the stack 6 with considerable forceand may tend to carry finely divided particles of water upwardly withthem. To prevent the escape of any of this water in liquid form l Iprovide above the casing 9 an annular bafiie plate 17 having a centralopening 18 and another baiile plate 19 arranged directly above theopening 18, said baffle plates serving to catch and throw back anyparticles of liquid or solid matter that might otherwise escape.

It will be noticed that the direction of movement of the exhaust gasesis reversed or changed from an upward to a downward direction beforethey pass through the film of water and that such gases are movingdownward when they issue from the casing 9 into the stack 6 thus tendingto cause any solid particles whose momentum carries them through thespray of water to fall into the trap at the bottom of stack 6. Water maybe supplied through pipe 15 by connecting the same to the usual watercirculation system. of an engine.

In addition to cleaning the exhaust gases the device also serves as amuffler to muffle the noise of the explosion, while the cold waterflowing down the sides of the pipe 5 cools such pipe, and, by coolingthe exhaust gases in said pipe contracts said exhaust gases and reducesback pressure in the exhaust pipe.

I have also found that this device tends to reduce the shock ofvibration produced within a smoke stack by the discharge of gasesfollowing explosions in rapid succession. This, I attribute to thecooling and condensing effect of the water and to the fact that thegases are emitted in transverse directions from the exhaust pipe,

In some instances it may not be desirable to place this device in thesmoke stack, as, for instance, where the smoke stack is at a relativelyhigh elevation and it is desired to connect the water spray device with'the water circulation system of an engine and the pump in said watercirculation system is not capable of supplying water at the. height ofthe smoke stack. In instances of this nature I provide a device of theform shown in Fig. 3 in which 20 is a drum which may be located near anengine, not shown, and 21 is an exhaust pipe from the engine arranged toextend axially into the drum 20. An inverted casing 22 is placed overthe end of exhaust pipe 21 and secured thereto, said casing having awater jacket space 23 connected with a water inlet pipe 24 and arrangedto spray water through perforations 29 onto exhaust pipe 21. Outletperforations 25 for exhaust gas are provided near the upper end ofxhaust pipe 21. 26 and 27 are baffle plates located above casing 22 andcorresponding in purpose and function to battle plates 17 and 19 in Fig.1, and 28 is an outlet pipe. through which the cleaned exhaust gas mayescape. The end of outlet pipe 28 may terminate within. a smoke stack,not shown. The bottom of drum 20 forms a receptacle in which water maycollect. This water is permitted to overflow into an annular troughformed by a' ring 30 and is drawn off through a discharge pipe 31. Ifind that particles of soot and solid matter that float will be carriedover into the trough formed by ring 30 and discharged. more promptlythan they will be where I use only a discharge pipe and no trough asshown in Fig. 1. The trough thus prevents the accumulation of solidmatter in the water chamber.

The device shown in Fig. 3 operates in substantially the same manner asthe device shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the exhaust gas dischargingtransversely through perforations 25 passes downwardly through the sprayof water from perforations 29, strikes the water in the bottom of drum20 and passes upwardly as shown by arrows and out through pipe 28.

The foregoing description and accompanying drawings clearly disclose. apreferred embodiment of my invention, but, it will be understood thatthis disclosure merelyillustrative and that such changes in the devicemay be mace as are within the scope and spirit of the following claims.

I claim:

1. In apparatus of the class described, an upright exhaust pipe having aplurality of openings near its upper end through which exhaust gas maybe emitted sidewise, a casing of larger diameter than said exhaust pipeextending down over exhaust pipe and leaving an annular passagewaybetween the walls of the casing and the walls of the pipe, said casinghaving an annular ring of perforations, means forming a water chamberaround said ring of perforations and means for supplying water underpressure to said water chamber to cause a spray of water to be directedinwardly onto said ex haust pipe.

2. In apparatus of the class described, a smoke stack, a water tightbottom in said smoke stack, water outlet means connected with said smokestack at a short distance above said bottom, an exhaust pipe extendingupwardly through said bottom into said.

smoke stack and having circumferential openings near its upper endthrough which exhaust may be emitted at right angles to said pipe, aninverted casing resting on the upper end of said exhaust pipe andextending downwardly over the upper end thereof to form an annularpassageway between the oasing and the pipe through which exhaust gasesmay pass downwardly and means for directing a spray of water from saidcasing across said annular passageway in the path of said gases and ontosaid exhaust pipe.

AMANDUs KOLSTRAND.

